Automatic feeding and measuring device.



A. RINGLAND & P. B. W000. AUTOMATIC FEEDING AND MEASURING DEVICE.

I APPLICATION FILED JULY 23, 1910.

Q 990,593, r Patented Apr. 25, 19 11.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

2 /& WITNESSES f5 7f 4 Y mvsmonsmm Wm 0M M [7 BY W (i/ fil/r WW r fi i.menu-H6- A. RINGLAND & F. B. WOOD. AUTOMATIC FEEDING AND MEASURINGDEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 23, 1910. v

' Patented Apr. 25, 1911.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WITNESSES INVENTORS MM (Jaw-5U ALBERT RING-LAND AND FREDERIGK WOOD, OFPHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA,

ASSIGNORS TO STANDARD ROLLER BEARING COMPANY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENN-SYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

AUTOMATIC FEEDING AND MEASURING DEVICE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ALBERT RINGLAND and FREDERICK B. Wool), citizens ofthe United States, residing in the cityv and county of Philadelphia,State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Automatic Feedingand Measuring Device, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates toa new and useful automatic device 'for use infeeding and measuring articles, such as balls, etc., and consists inproviding means whereby one article at a time is fed from the device.

' tional View on line y-y, Fig. 1. Fig. 4 represents a plan view of abase plate employed, with the top portion of the device removed. Fig. 5represents a bottom plan view of a disk or head employed.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in thefigures.

Referring to the drawings We have found in practice that in the handlingof balls in the manufacture of the same for ball bearings, etc., andmore particularly in feeding the same to the grinding .machine, it isdiflicult to feed the same singly arid in a proper manner.

Our invention is designed to overcome this defect, and in the drawingswe have shown a construction which 0 erates successfully in practice,but we deslre it understood that the arrangement of the parts may bevaried, other 'instrumentalities may be employed, and changes may bemade in the construction which will come within the scope of ourinvention, andwe do not therefore desire to be limited in every instanceto the exact form as herein shown and described, but desire to make suchchanges as may be necessary. 1

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed. July 23,

Patented Apr. 25, 1911. 1910. Serial No. 573,396.

1 designates a frame for the device which may be fastened to anysuitable point or to a machine, such as a ball grinding machine. Carriedby said frame is a base plate 'or supwhich is situated a spindle 3having a suitable portion thereof in engagement with said base plate andbeing provided with a shoulder 4.

5 designates a disk or head adapted to be received upon the spindle 3and having a suitable portion thereof abutting the shoulder 4 thereon,and which disk is adapted to be held in suitable connection with saidspindle 3 by a nut 6 which is preferably in threaded engagement withsaid spindle 3, as best understood from Fig. 2.

7 designates a bevel gear suitably mounted upon said spindle 3 and whichis in mesh with a pinion 8 suitably carried upon a drive shaft 9, whichis journaled, 1n the present, in the supports 10. Any suitable means fordriving said shaft 9 may be employed, and in the drawings we have showna portion of a pulley 11 for this purpose.

From the above it will be understood that by the proper rotation of thedrive shaft 9, the spindle 3 will be rotated through the medium of thepinion 8 and bevel gear 7, so that rotary -movement will be imparted tothe disk or head 5.

It-will be noted that the top face of the disk or head 5 is rounded orinclined downwardly from the point of support of the spindle 3 and isprovided with an outwardly extending flange 12 which is provided with aplurality of openings 13 forming compart ments or pockets, situatedaround the flange at intervals, which openings are adapted to besituated over the portion 14 of the base plate 2, said portion 14.thusserving as a table or support for the balls after the same have beenreceived or are located in the openings 13.

At a suitable point in the'base plate 2, we provide a discharge opening15 to which leads a suitable inclined groove 16 formed in said baseplate 2, said groove starting at a point in the direction from which theballs travel upon'said portion 14, indicated by the arrows in Fig.4. V

17 designates a discharge chute or pipe in suitable connection with theopening 15 in the base plate 2.

port 2 provided with a suitable opening, in

disk,

we have here shown the plate 18 as bent in-' nected with the base plate2 18 designates a plate or band which is conplate' 18 is. bent inwardlyat 19 andis cut .away from below sufiiciently to allow the free passageof the flange 12 on the diskor head 5 to pass freely therebeneath,and-the portion 20 of said band or plate, in the present instance, beingsituated at a suitable point with relation to-the disk or head 5, inorder to serve as a guard or 'de for properly directing certain of t eballs which have been carried around on the top of the as will behereinafter set forth. While wardly to form the guard 20, it will beapparent that any suitable means for forming this guard may be-employed.

21 designates v a standard suitably con- D at a suitable pomt adjacentthe guard 20 and exteriorly thereof, said support carrying a springfinger 22, th end of which is adapted to be so situated and placed thatit will successlvely enter'the openings 13 in the flange 12 of. the diskor head as they are presented thereto, as best seen in Fig. 3,'in orderto positively'force theballs from the 0 enings 13 into the opening 15and so to t e discharge chute or piglmle 17, it being understood that asthe disk or 7 sad 5 rotates, the end of the said spring finger 22 willenter an opening 13, striking the ball which has passed down the groove16, after which the end of the said-spring fin er 22 will be elevated byan intervening wal as the disk orhead 5 rotates, and so will enter thenext opening, for the same purpose. 1

23 desi ates a spring arm suitably supported an so positioned as to beinline with the openings 13 in the flange 12, in order to force a ballinto an opening. 13 in case said ball should stick for any reason, andso otherwise would not be properly located in its respective opening 13.I

24 designates a late or partition, carried by ,the wall 18, whichextends sufliciently toward the spindle 3 to suitably divide thecompartment. The partition 24 is cut away at 25 to permit free passageof a certain number 0 the balls therethrough.

26 designates a series of balls WhlCh are carried in race-ways 26 and26" situated.

both in the base plate 2 and in the disk or head 5 for free movement ofthe parts. At

suitable points in the base plate 2 we provide openings 27 to permitescape of 011,

grease, etc., it being understood that-the said.

plate, run-way, etc., are providedjvith a suitable amount of oil inorder to permit free movement'of the balls and the parts of the device.a t

The operation of the device 1s as follows:

18, said balls being -which are vacant, as the balls have therefromi sothat the said surplus bal s will nates the sur lus balls which aredirecte cas ng formed by the bas'e'plate andthe wall preferably locatedupon the side of the partition 24, seen in'Fi 1, that is, upon the side0' posite to the direction movement. of the k or head 5.- "As the topface of the disk or head 5 is rounded or inc 'ned," the ballsfwilltendto pass downwardly to the edge -of said'disk and so to "the openings-.13m the'flange 12, each of which openings 13 is adapted to receive a g Aplurality of. balls 2 8 are'placedint-the I nected with the baseplate'2- and with .;4

I the base plate a casing or receptacle into which the balls are placedin order that the same may be fed from the device, The said ball. Motionbeing imparted to the drive shaft 9, the said be carried around by saidisk or head 5 k or head will be ro-- 'tated and the balls in theopenings 13 will u on the table or support 14 until the inc med roove 16is reached, at which time the bal will pass downwardl in said groove tothe opening 15,5and so t rough the discharge chute or pipe 17 to amachine or other suitable lace as desired;

As previous y stated, the spring finger 22 w11l prevent any jamming orsticking of the balls, since the same successivel enters the openings 13and drives a ball into the ope'nin 15 and to the pipe 17 'As the disk orhea 5 rotates, some of the balls 28 will be carried around with the sameas they cannot enter any of the "openings 13, and as they are carriedaround, these surplus balls wil strike the guard 20 and be directedaround, back into some of, the openings {'31,

ass

be pro er y located in an opening 13 to be carrie around as the disk orhead 5 rotates, and will be discharged'when the openin 15 is reached.clearly seen in Fig. 1, in which 29 desig- 1 as indicated 1n the arrowsa, by the guard 20, around into the openings 13 which have alreadydischarged their balls. In some instances, and for some reasons,a ballmay not always pass entirely into an opening. 13 and rest upon the table14, and in order to prevent this, we have provided the'spring arm 23which is suitably located in the path of movement ofthe flan e 12 of thedisk 5, in order that should a ba lremain above the top of the flange12, this bein seen in F g. 3, the said spring arm 23 will contact withsaid ball 30 and will force the same. into the opening 13 in which it isalready partly situated, so that said ball 30 will likewise be inposition to enter the groove 16 and be This movement of the bal s is"directed .through the opening 15 into the a pipe 17.

-Attention is directed to the fact that by disk or plate 5, say forexample, onehundred, whereby it will be seen that one full rotation ofthe disk or head will feed one hundred articles from the machine. Inthis way the device serves to both automatically feed the articles andalso provides means for measuring or countin articles fed.' It Will eunderstood further, as previously stated that, while we have shown anddescribed the automatic feeding device as applied to balls, theconstruction and arrangement is adapted for feeding any suitablearticles, it only being necessary to make the pockets or openings in thedisk and the cooperating parts, of suitable construction for thispurpose.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a device of the character stated, a disk having a plurality ofopenings therein, each of which is adapted to receive an art1- cle,means for rotating said disk, a support beneath said openings and uponwhich the articles travel, said support having an opening therein at asuitable point and through which the articles fall, and resilient meansadapted to enter the disk opening when the same is in register'with saidsupport opening for positively feeding the articles to said supportopening.

2. In a device of the character stated, a disk having a lurality ofopenings therein, each of which is adapted to receive an article, meansfor rotating said disk, a support beneath said openings and upon whichthe articles travel, said support having. an opening therein at asuitable point and through which the articles fall, and a resilient armfor assisting the feed of the balls to said support opening.

3. In a device of the character stated, a disk having a plurality ofopenings therein, each of which is adapted to receive an article, meansfor rotating said disk, a support. beneath said openings and upon whichthe articles travel, said support having an opening therein at asuitable point and through which the articles fall, means for positivelyfeeding an article to the support opening and said support having aninclined groove leading to sand support opening.

4. In a device of the character stated, a disk having a plurality ofopenings therein, each of which is adapted to receive an article, meansfor rotating said disk, a support beneath said openings and upon whichthe articles travel, said supporthaving an opening therein at a suitablepoint and through which the articles fall, and means for guiding thesurplus articles carried around upon the surface of the disk anddirecting the same around the support opening into a vacant disk openingafter the latter has passed :he support opening.

5. In a device of the character stated, a

the exact number of v disk having a plurality of openings therein,

each of which is adapted to receive an artiing therein at a suitablepoint and through which the articles fall, means for assisting the feedof the articles through said supportopeuing, an inclined groove in saidsupport, leading to said support opening, and a resilient arm suitablypositioned for forcing the article into a disk opening.

7. In a device of the character stated, a disk having an inclined upperface and a plurality of openings adjacent the outer edge thereof, eachof which is adapted to receive an article, a support beneath saidopenings and upon which the articles rest, said su port having anopening into which the articles are directed from the successiveopenings in the disk, and continuously acting means adapted toautomatically enter a disk opening as it registers with the supportopening for positively passing the articles to said support opening.

8. In a device of the character stated, a dome-shaped disk and aplurality of openings adjacent the outer edge thereof, each of which isadapted to receive an article, a support beneath said openings and uponwhich the articles rest, said support having an opening into which thearticles are directed from the successive openings in the disk,continuously acting means adapted to automatically enter a disk openingas it registers with the support opening for positively ried around uponthe surface of the disk into a vacant disk-opening.

9. In a device of the character stated, a disk having an inclined upperface and a plurality of openings adjacent the outer edge thereof, eachof which is adapted to receive an article, a support beneath saidopenings and upon which the articles rest, said support having anopening into which the articles are directed from the successiveopenings in the disk, continuously acting means adapted to automaticallyenter a disk opening as itregisters with the support opening forpositively passing the articles to said support opening, a guard fordirecting the articles carried around upon the surface of the, disk intoa vacant disk-opening, and

means for v forcing an-aartideinto aidisk inclined in 10. 1%1 a deviceof -the character'statcd, a casing having a base plate, a. portionthereof forming a support, a disk rotatably mounted I in said-casing andhaving a plurality of opem'n adjacent the outer wall thereof and movab eabove said support, each of said openings being adapted to receive anarticle and to carry the same around on said support, the latter havingan openin and an groove, 9. spring finger a apted to successive y enterthe dlsk-openings to discharge the articles therefrom, a guard for thearticles carried around on the face of said disk, a resilient arm forforcing an article into a disk-opening, and a partition in said casing.

11. In a device of the character stated, a casing having a base plate, aortion thereof formmg a support provide with a discharge opening, a diskrotatably mounted in said casing and having a plurality of open-c ingsadjacent the outer wa 1 thereof and said disk being movable above saidsupport, each of said openings being adapted to receive an article andto carry the same around on said support, the latter having an inclinedgroove eading to the. discharge opening, a s ring finger adapted tosuccessively enter t e disk-openings to discharge the articlestherefrom,aguard for the articles which are carried around on the faceof said disk, a resilient arm for forcing an article into a diskopening,a partition in said casing, and

means for rotating said disk.

- 12. The combination in .afeeding and measuring device, of a movablemember having article receiving openings therein, a support forming atrack for the articles in said openings and provided I with ,a dischar eopening, resilient means for automatical y exerting pressure against anarticle in an opening as. it comes into alinement with the dischargeopening to eject it into the latter, and means for causing relativemovement between said member and support.

" '13. The combination in a feeding and -measuring device, of a'diskhaving a plurality of openings therein,-a support beneath said disk.formin a track for the articles and having a disc arge opening, a guardin proximity to said opening, a resilient mem 161" in proximity to saidguard. for forcing an article into said open1ngs, a spring arm engagingeach article 'a's-the disk opemng in,

which it is located registers with the discharge opening to eject thearticle from its disk opening, and means for rotating said disk.

14. The combination in a feeding and measuring device, of a disk havinga plurality of openings thereinja stationary partition suitablysupported above said disk, a

support beneath said disk forming a track for the articles and having a'discharge'openmg, a guard 1n proximity to said opening, a resilientmember in roximity'. to saidguard for forcing an artic e into saidopenings, :1 spring arm engaging each-articleas the disk openmg in whichit is located registers with the discharge opening to eject the articlefrom its disk opening, and means for rea disk opening as the sameregisters with the discharge opening said disk.

16. The combination in a feeding and and means for rotating measuringdevice, of a support forming a track for the articles and having adischarge opening and an inclined groove leading to said opening, a diskrotatably mounted above .said support and having apertures in alinementwith said track, a guard suitably supported and inwardly deflected toguide articles on the upper surface of the disk around the dischargeopening, a spring arm for forcingan artlcle into a diskopening,

means for exerting pressure on an article 1n a disk opening as the sameregisters with the discharge opening, a partition in said casing havingan opening therethrough for passage 3f 1trhe articles, and means forrotating said 17. In a device of the character stated, a disk having aplurality of openings-therein,

-a support beneath said disk forming a track for the articles and havinga discharge opening, means for forcing an article into a disk opening, auard in proximity to said opening for gui ing the surplus articlescarried around upon the surface of the disk and for directing the sameinto a vacant disk opening and continuously acting means engaging thearticle in a disk opening, when the latter registers with the dischargeopening, to

.eject the articlefrom said disk 0 ening.

' 18. The combination in a ceding and measuring device of a movablemember formed with a series of article-receiving openin s through it, asupport forming a track or the articles in said openings and rovidedwith a discharge opening, means or moving said movable member tosuccessively bring its article receiving openings in register with thedischarge opening, andcontinuously acting means in register with thedischarge opening for successively exerting pressure upon the articlesas they arrive at ing pressure means in register with the dissaidopening. charge opening and successively exerting 19. The combination ina feeding and pressure upon the articles as they arrive at measuringdevice of a member formed with said opening.

5 a series of article-receiving openings through ALBERT RINGLAND.

it amember havin a discharge opemng means for moving on e of saidmembers in its FREDERICK WOOD relation to the other to successivelybring an Witnesses: article-receiving opening in register wlth WM. CANERWIEDERsEIM, 10 the discharge opening, and continuously act- 0. D. MCVAY.

